"Not only is the SAT a critical tool for success in college, but also in the workforce and in life," she said.

Bat is to Guano as Bull is to _______________.

-janelane

More colleges move toward optional SATs - CNN.com

From Contract documents at my job:

Where Contractor is prevented from completing any part of the Work within the Contract Times due to delay beyond the control of Contractor, the Contract Times will may be extended in an amount equal to the time lost due to such delay if a Claim is made therefor as provided in Paragraph 12.02.A. Delays beyond the control of Contractor shall include, but not be limited to, acts or neglect by Owner, acts or neglect of utility owners or other contractors performing other work as contemplated by Article 7, fires, floods, epidemics, abnormal weather conditions, quarantine restrictions, strikes, freight embargoes, acts of war (declared or not declared), or acts of God.

BTW, I pity every fucking lawyer out there having to write this shit. It's bad enough reviewing it!

-janelane

By putting those nine digits on public display, Mr. Davis was trying to show the world how confident he was in LifeLock’s service. And it worked. Today, he has just over one million customers. In January, Goldman Sachs led a $25 million round of financing for the company. Last week, Google’s chief financial officer joined its board.

But Mr. Davis’s stunt also amounted to a dare, and one man in Texas has already succeeded in getting a payday loan in his name.

Regulators and lawyers have the company in their sights, too. The state of Oklahoma accused LifeLock of selling insurance without proper certification. New York City has announced its intention to sue the company. Class-action lawyers have filed federal and state lawsuits, charging deceptive business practices and fraudulent advertising, among other things.

Sounds like a great idea if you're too lazy to do e-billing, shred mail with account information, or check your credit report every few months.

-janelane

Your Money - LifeLock Identity Fraud Service Finds Skeptics - NYTimes.com

Interactive infographic on money spent after x number of years for buying and renting.

Basically, having now bought a house, I move for at least 6-10 years, depending on house appreciation (or depreciation).

-janelane

Is It Better to Buy or Rent? - NYTimes.com

Universities call it “rikei banare,” or “flight from science.” The decline is growing so drastic that industry has begun advertising campaigns intended to make engineering look sexy and cool, and companies are slowly starting to import foreign workers, or sending jobs to where the engineers are, in Vietnam and India.

Same problem faced in the U.S. If I had a nickel everytime a little boy said they wanted to be a baseball player, or a little girl said they wanted to be a 4th grade teacher, *I* wouldn't need to pursue engineering. I went to "Introduce a Girl to Engineering" at GT a few weeks ago, and 99% of the middle school girls I talked to didn't know what engineers did or that different types of specialties were available. I was pretty fuzzy on it myself at that age, and my dad has two engineering degrees. It is really a sad state of affairs.

-janelane, engineering *is* sexy and cool.

High-Tech Japanese, Running Out of Engineers - New York Times

“While the president is standing idly by, proposing irrelevant solutions to a national and international crisis,” he added, “Shell and BP announced record profits for the first quarter in 2008. Whose side is the president on?”

You're fucking right to ask that question, and I hope everyone realizes that McCain is on the same fucking side.

-janelane, I just get so ANGRY

Bush Presses Congress on Economy - New York Times

OCALA, Florida (CNN) -- Actor Wesley Snipes was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison for three misdemeanor counts of failing to file tax returns -- the maximum requested by federal prosecutors.

Damn! Now there's no one standing between us and the vampires.

-janelane

Snipes gets the max -- 3 years -- in tax case - CNN.com

The thousands of new graduates who will be driving the engine of the city’s rental market from now until September will quickly learn that renting in New York is not like renting anywhere else.

The second shock is likely to be how small a Manhattan apartment can be. It is not uncommon in New York, for example, to shop for a junior one-bedroom or a convertible one-bedroom, neither of which is a true one-bedroom at all but really a studio that already has or can have a wall put up to create a bedroom.

Aside from the realities of price and space, the requirements set by New York landlords are also bound to help turn a bright-eyed first-time renter’s outlook grim. To start with, landlords want only tenants who earn at least 40 times the monthly rent, which means an $80,000 annual salary for a $2,000 apartment. According to census data, more than 25,000 graduates ages 22 to 28 moved to the city in 2006, and their median salary was about $35,600.

Those who don’t make 40 times their monthly rent need a guarantor, usually a parent, who in turn must make at least 80 times the monthly rent. In addition to a security deposit, some landlords also want the first and last month’s rent. Tack on a broker’s fee and a prospective renter for that $2,000 apartment is out of pocket nearly $10,000 just to get the keys to the place.

The apartment sizes and prices in NY never cease to amaze me.

-janelane

Finding Your First Apartment in New York City - Your Apartment May Be Smaller Than Expected - Housing - New York Times

From an article I wrote for Earth Day Week at my office:

Did you know...?

> 40% of bottled water comes from public water sources.
> It takes three to seven times as much water to produce a bottle of water as to fill it up.
> Americans use 25 billion single-serve plastic water bottles per year, and 20 billion of those end up as litter or in landfills.
> 60-70% of bottled water sold in the US is not subject to the Food and Drug Administration’s bottled water standards since water bottled and sold in the same state is not subject to federal regulations.
> Even when they do apply, FDA bottled water rule are list stringent than the Environmental Protection Agency’s municipal water treatment standards.
> City tap water must meet standards for certain toxins, carcinogens, E. coli and other pathogens which are not regulated by the FDA.
> Unlike municipal water systems, bottlers are not required to issue a “right to know” about the constituents of the water.

Sources:
http://www.bottledwaterblues.com/Bottled_Water_Facts.cfm
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/02/pablo_calculate.php
http://conservation.meetup.com/30/boards/thread/4027311

-janelane, water professional

In 30 lawsuits, FedEx Ground drivers have argued that they are employees, not independent contractors, and that the company should therefore pay for their trucks, insurance, repairs, gas and tires. In one lawsuit, a California judge ruled that FedEx Ground was engaged in an elaborate ruse in which FedEx “has close to absolute control” over the drivers. Last December, FedEx acknowledged another setback: the I.R.S. ordered it to pay $319 million in taxes and penalties for 2002 for misclassifying employees as independent contractors. FedEx could face similar I.R.S. penalties for subsequent years. FedEx said it would appeal.

To attract drivers, FedEx Ground often runs ads claiming that its drivers earn $60,000 to $80,000 a year. Many drivers say those ads are deceiving. Gross income can exceed $60,000, but Jean, echoing many drivers, said she had to pay nearly $800 a month for her truck, $125 a week for gas, $55 a week for business equipment, $4,000 a year for insurance policies, plus outlays for tires, maintenance and repairs. Some years, Jean calculated, her net pay was just $32,000, amounting to $10.25 an hour.

FedEx blows. Independent contracting is the biggest load of bull. The rest of the article is about how they fired her after she asked for a leave of absence for her third recurrence of cancer.

Another scam companies try is not hiring workers full time so they don't have to provide benefits. My sister ran into this at every retailer and restaurant where she's worked.

-janelane

Working Life (High and Low) - New York Times